The hurdy-gurdy man

that old bray of my heart

Do no harm: sin, or virtue, are secondary to this injunction. Deadly sins of poverty, hypocrisy, abound. Don’t let red anger blossom in you. Nor black despair. Keep blood in your cheeks. Do not let desire dictate your life. But make your heart beat faster; spread the laughter. Do not promulgate the short fuses of envy or jealousy. Vanity offers only a pretended life: stripped of gentleness and strife. Feel proud of your extraordinary ordinariness. Take off the padded suit of self-deception you wear. Feel the sweet sting of bitter love lost. Walk in the forest of your own body. Learn to temper your heart. Rest for a while by still water. Know that the most deceiving, cunning flatterers do not evade the grave. Make your brain work harder to remain still. Deadly sin cannot devour you. For you, like me, will find your way to grace.